Bar Bans Google's Glasses Over Privacy Concerns

Google's Project Glass is definitely a game changer, but not everyone believes it's necessarily for the better. The 5 Point Cafe, a local Seattle dive bar, has announced that it is banning the wearable headset, which could be used to take pictures of patrons. On the business' Facebook page, the bar's owner said "*** kickings will be encouraged for violators."

The 5 Point Cafe is the first in what could be a significant list of business that ban Google's upcoming wearable computing device. Privacy concerns are growing as the new product edges closer to release, allowing anyone to take a picture or record a video by simply saying a simple preset phrase. The first-person perspective of the camera provides a unique intimacy to the captured images and critics are worried about how human interaction will be affected if their every action could be captured and instantly uploaded to YouTube.

Dave Meinhert, owner of the 5 Point Cafe, said that the post was meant to be humorous but that he was completely serious about the ban. "We don’t let people film other people or take photos unwanted of people in the bar," he said. "It is kind of a private place that people go."

The ban comes far in advance of the release of Project Glass, which isn't yet available to developers and isn't expected to be launched as a consumer release until the end of the year. Google may need to address some of these business concerns prior to the release of the headset in order to avoid Project Glass becoming a taboo similar to smoking in bars and restaurants.